


The Nanook

by babygreenlizard



Series: WIP "X-Girls" [1]
Category: X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Britain and France were fighting over pre-Canada, Experimentation, F/M, Mutant Powers, Shapeshifter, Torture, and an expirement, it runs in the family, neither of them belonged there but white people, patriot war (1837-1839), ridiculous right?, she's a bear
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-27
Updated: 2020-08-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:13:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25724917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babygreenlizard/pseuds/babygreenlizard
Summary: Alasie Boucher had spent most of her life alone and in peace, until she takes in James and Victor, then her life kinda falls down the drain.Getting kidnapped and tortured by their General was not in her schedule for surviving.From raising two orphaned ferals to becoming a teacher at Xavier's School for the Gifted, her life is quite a story.
Relationships: OFC/OMC, ofc/beast
Series: WIP "X-Girls" [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1865947





	The Nanook

**Author's Note:**

> Appearances is the only resemblance between "oc" in real life and "oc" in this fictional world.
> 
> 1 of 5 Books
> 
> POSTED BUT NOT FINISHED SO IT DOESN'T AUTO DELETE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Start

1838

A brush of cool water brings Alasie to the surface, greeted by blinding pain and an eternal drowsiness that's been her companion for three years.

"She's getting worse, Aluki." It's her father speaking, voice hushed and solemn as he holds her hand in a bruising grip at her left bedside.

"She'll get better, Francis." That's her mother, firm yet quiet from her right, dragging the cold rag across Alasie's forehead. "The gods will save her." Her father shakes his head but leans over to press a kiss to her mother's cheek.

"I'll go grab some lumber." He removes himself from Alasie's bedside, moving to the door and slipping through after he's dawned his outerwear.

"I'm sorry, mom." The thirteen years old's voice is barely audible as she apologizes for the umpteenth time, Aluki simply shakes her head and runs her free hand through her daughter's loose curls. "Don''t apologize for what you can't control, atiqtalaaq." Is whispered against her forehead before a kiss is placed after it. "This only proves that the gods have something special planned for you."

There's heavy sounds at the door and Aluki grabs a spear, holding it in a protective stance. "They're injured." Alasie's father informs after puhsing the door open, a man draped off his shoulder. The two females share a look before her mother returns the weapon to its spot and stands up.

"How many?" She asks, helping her husband escort the man inside. "Four." Alasie's parents move to help the other injured men in, pulling out extra furs for them to lay on.

Despite the unkown illness weighing her body down, Alasie pushes herself to sit up in her cot, looking over at the visitors. She recognizes their clothes, their uniforms, they are the men fighting to keep the land under French rule, men fighting against the British to control Alasie's people, the land her people have resided in since the beginning of history.

She turns to her parents, mother busy boiling water and father working on grabbing all the supplies they possessed. They have to know who these men are, who they're representing and yet they're treating them like tribe members, like friends...

but she couldn't ask why, not when her illness digs into her with harpoons, dragging her back under the a realm absent of all sight and sound.

Three days have passed, the soldiers are improving as did they atmosphere. The four men slowly relaxing and coming to terms with the hospitality given to them by Alasie's family.

They ate around the small table in their home, her parents and the recovering men, though she might as well be beside them as well with how small their home is. The misconceptions of the men staying with them made Alasie feel shame for thinking so lowly of them.

Especially when the soldiers went hunting with her parents or told her stories of their home, their own families waiting for them. The similarities they all share regardless of the which side they chose to fight on. She never asked her parents why they took in the men, not when she finds the answer first hand when one soldier hands her a toy of his.

A Cup-and-Ball is what he calls it, a wooden cup with a wooden ball painted bright red attached to it by twine. He demonstrated how it works before giving her a chance. It took, one, two, three tries to get the sphere to sit in the cup and the shock on the man's face brings soft giggles out of her. Laughter the house hasn't heard since her illness began.

The soldier is barely sixteen, his left arm tied in a sling and his right eye covered by gause. He's all gap tooth smiles and freckled cheeks always pink from laughter or the cold, red hair unruly on top of his head and hazel eyes surrounded by laugh lines.

Marcel is his name, and Alasie can't stop the feeling of how it falls from her lips, sure her French is limited as is his Inuit but they make do, especially when her French father resumes her French lessons and her Inuit mother take son the task of teaching Marcel and the others their native tongue.

The two of them spend their days story telling, taking turns saying a sentence till they're both aching from laughter, and she feels something in her chest every time.

She isn't sure what it is, just leaves her flustered and giddy, his wheezing laughs releasing the fluttering of baby birds in her stomach. Her thoughts fall to him when he's out hunting, she's scared of it though. 

Afraid that if she brings it up it means she's dying, that's she's finally passing away after three years of sadness. It scares her, she doesn't want to leave her parents behind, doesn't want to leave Marcel behind, the first friend she's ever had.

Ostracized for being mixed, Marcel and the soldiers are the only ones beside her parents who didn't call her slurs, who embrace her for her mixed heritage. These people residing in her home, family.

A month passes and most of the soldiers are fully healed, but she wishes they weren't, it's incredibly shelfish, outright rude. yet she can't help it, she doesn't want to be alone again, left to twiddle her thumbs or sleep because her parents are out keeping them alive. She doesn't admit it to herself, but above all she doesn't want Marcel to say goodbye.

Her mood dampens, her smile doesn't reach her eyes when the young man cracks a joke, and the household notices. Watches as she pushes her stew around in her bowl, taking small scoops before setting it aside.

It's her tenth day of disgarding her bowl, instead curling up with her back towards the rest of cabin when her mother ushers them all out of the house before it's just the two women left in the cackling of the fire.

"What's wrong, atiqtalaaq?" Her mother asks after settling down on the cot behind Alasie. "Nothing, mom." Aluki scoffs at her daughter's answer as she runs her hands through the teen's curls. "I don't like it when you lie to me, Alasie.

"Is it about the men leaving?" Her mother smiles when she catches Alasie's hitch in her breathing. "Or is it about him leaving?" She doesn't say his name, but Alasie knows who she's addressing and rolls over to bury her face in Aluki's lap.

"How does loving dad feel?" The thirteen years old asks quietly, breaking the comfortable silence the two found themselves in. "Exciting, like every day is an adventure even if we don't leave the house. Eternal happiness, nothing is sad or wrong when he's by my side, it's always a good day..."

The young woman stays silent, running her mother's words through her mind, and enjoying the gentle scratching of her mother's nails along her scalp. "I think I love Marcel, mom." The admittance is quiet, breathless against Aluki's thigh and she chuckles. "I figured, my atiqtalaaq. You two aren't exactly settle." The blush the covers Alasie head to toe has her mother laughing, falling against the wall.

"Your father and I had an idea that you two liked each other, of course he's a bit more stubborn to accept it but he came around when he saw how happy Marcel makes you. We missed your laughter, the light that was always in your beautiful brown eyes, Alasie."

"But he's leaving, mom. He has to go back and fight." Alasie presses her face into her mother's thigh who sighs. "Who says he has to? We're not fighting. I bet he'll stay if you tell him how you feel." Alasie looks up at her mother, hope once again present in chocolate eyes. "You think so?" Her mother nods. "I know so."

The door opens, leaving the two women in silence when a head of red hair peeks in. "Marcel, I gotta go fetch water. Can you watch over Alasie?" Her mother gets up and is out the door before the young man can even reply, leaving the two in silence.

Alasie's coughs breaks the silence and Marcel is quick to rush over after pouring water from the pitcher into a cup. "Here, take this." He holds the cup out for her to take small sips from, free hand moving to rub circles into her back. With a weak hand she pushes the cup away from her lips and he sets it on the small table beside her cot before helping her rest against the wall and pillows.

"Thanks you, Marcel." her voice is rough from the coughing but she manages a weak smile which he returns. "No thanks needed, Alasie." He settles down on the stool beside the cot, gingerly reaching out to take hold of her hand closest to him.

"We need to talk." The young woman nods as she bites her bottom lip but the two remain in silence, his thumb rubbing the back of her hand as her free one runs through the furs covering her.

"Please don't leave."

"I can't leave."

The two are left in silence after their conjoined confession, blush heavy on both their faces as they avoid eye contact. "I think I love you, Alasie..." He starts before using his free hand to gently turn her face toward him. "even if you're sick, I don't want to leave you, I can't leave you behind."

"Shucks." Alasie's response has Marcel blinking in confusion. "I'd kiss you right now, if I could." The male blinks before relief floods his face. "Oh, thank goodness." He sighs, shaking his head before lifting from his chair enough to leave a lingering kiss on her cheek. "Well, it's better than nothing." She giggles as she moves to grab his other hand. "i can't bear the thought of you leaving." The two laugh even if it isn't funny, relief and this new feeling blossoming in their chests mixing together into some sort of alcoholic beverage.

Another week passes before the soldiers depart, promising to lie about Marcel's absence if anyone dare ask. Alasie hates seeing them go, they've become a large of her life and she turns her face into Marcel's neck, leaning all of her weight against him as they walk away.

One month passes and the love between the two teens only grows, filling the small cabin with even more affection until she imagines it bursting, the thought bringing laughter out of her and odd stares from the rest of the household.

Marcel and her father have just returned from collecting firewood, the latter feeding the fire while the former hangs their clothes up to dry in front of it.

"How are you feeling, atiqtalaaq?" Her mother asks as she brings another bowl of stew over. "I'm feeling good, mom." Alasie's condition is improving, she isn't perfectly healed but she's able to walk around the cabin and her coughing has subsided significantly. The odd side affects of her health is heightened senses, smells and sounds grating on her ears and nose, not to mention how long her nails have grown, permanently sharp no matter what she does with them but the household ignores them. Focusing solely on her recovery.

"Good, because we need to talk, all of us." Her father breaks the comfortable atmosphere the house has fallen into and her heart falls into her stomach, no longer hungry. They gather around the table, Marcel bouncing his left leg while Alasie fiddles with her braid.

"We've been recieving news that the Hunter's Lounge has been going through homes looking for turncoats." The two teens tense up, eyes flicking back and forth from each other to Francis. "That's why you two are leaving tomorrow night. It'll give you three days headstart to get as far away as possible."

Alasie shakes her head. "I can't leave you. I won't leave you here to die." Her mother steps in to reply. "We won't die, there won't be any traces of either of you." There is pain in her face. Marcel's biting at his nails, worry heavy on his face. "I'd rather die fighting to protect you than run away."

It's the next night when her world burns down around her. A night forever engraved into her very being, her soul.

Marcel and Alasie have the packs on, buried in furs and outerwear to protect them from the harsh environment outside their door. Aluki squeezes her daughter hard, whispering reassurances into her hair, Francis joining soon after with his own words of endearment before he pulls Marcel into the hug.

They part with teary eyes and soft goodbyes before the two teens move toward the door, the sixteen years old's hand reaching out to open it when heavy knocks shake the wood. The two panic and her mother pulls them back and towards the sole window at the back of the cabin.

Akuli peeks out it, seeing it's clear before pushing the panes open. "Quick." She whispers as Marcel helps Alasie out the window before following as the pounding on the door resumes. Her mother pushes the bags out the window before walking away, leaving the two teens to collect the bags and sneak away.

They move into the trees but Alasie is already tiring out, the lack of exercise leaving them slow in their trek. They loose sight of the house but Akuli's scream from it carries to their ears and the young woman slaps a hand over her mouth to prevent the sob that could alert the Lounge before pushing on.

The smell of burning wood follows them and tears blind her while Marcel does everything he can to navigate them through the dark. "I'm so sorry, Alasie. We gotta go or else their death will be for nothing." He encourages and she shakes her head yet follows, energy renewed when yells from the Hunter's reach her ears even if Marcel can't hear them himself.

"They're coming, we gotta go!" She pushes and they start running, zig-zagging to confuse the men hunting them as the cracking echo of bullets surround them. A sharp pain blooms from her left thigh and she falls with a scream, landing face first in the snow.

The young man pulls his own pistol before dragging his girlfriend behind a large stone and cowering there himself. She grabs at his sleeve and takes a deep breath but is interrupted by her boyfriend. "Don't you dare say it. I'm not leaving you." His tone is firm and she simply settles with curling as close to him as possible while the men catch up to them.

Marcel doesn't give them a chance to look, fires a shot right in a man's chest, before ducking down to reload. The men are yelling, firing off their own shots into the darkness before he fires another shot, striking a man in the shoulder wielding a gun and repeats the process. The men get closer but Marcel doesn't stop, firing shot after shot despite being heavily outnumbered.

The two are focused on the battle that they don't hear the man sneaking up behind them until his hand covers Alasie's mouth before pulling her away from their cover.

"Look what I found, a half-ling who isn't dead." He proudly states before dragging her toward the Hunter's Lounge.

"Leave her alone!" Marcel's order is strong, filled with hatred as he resumes firing.

"Stop right there, scum. Shoot and I'll plant a bullet right between her pretty eyes." Alasie flinches as the barrel of a gun digs into her head, cringing when the men around her laugh.

"Okay, okay, just don't hurt her." Marcel steps out from behind the boulder, hands raised and the gun hanging from his index and thumb by the handle before walking cautiously toward the men. "Marcel..." She whimpers, vision fuzzy from blood loss as her boyfriend stops a few feet in front of them.

"Drop the gun and get on your knees." the leaves no room for disobedience before Marcel complies.

"Grab him, boys." Alasie is assed off to the leader as the others hold Marcel down. "You're really pretty for a mutt." He smiles down at her with a predatory look and she shivers.

"Don't you dare touch her!" Marcel is furious, struggling against the hold they have on him and the leader turns his attention to him. "You're not in a position to give orders, boy." The growl holds evil intentions before the man throws Alasie against a tree, pinning her against it after winding her.

Her breathing picks up as one of his hands moves underneath the fur wrapped around her shoulders. "Don't touch me!" The roar that tears out of her throat reverberates and leaves them all in shock, giving her the chance to dig her nails into the leader's throat before pulling back and tossing the body at the others.

She falls forward with a scream, writhering on the ground as the cracks and snaps of her bones hit the air like gunshots. Her tan skin seems to melt, revealing clear fur that reflected white with a blueish-purple undertone.

They watch on in horror as the woman before them becomes a Polar Bear, bigger than all of them with golden eyes holding dark promises. Men scramble away as she runs towards them heavy breathing and rough snorts before she strikes one of the hunters. He flies into a tree and falls still as she takes off after the others, eliminating two more before a gunshot stops her.

She whips around to see Marcel holding his stomach and the man she had flung against the tree trembling with the effort to hold up the gun. She turns tail and runs head first toward the injured man, not even flinching when a bullet lands in her shoulder before she slams her paw against his throat and pushing until a snap echoes through the trees.

"Alasie..." Marcel's voice is breathless, ending with a groan that has her lumbering over to him before nosing his neck. The bear nudges him, soft whines leaving her throat as he gasps. The snow beneath him is pink and she makes the split second decision to push the man onto her back before taking off with her torn pack hanging from her jowls.

They run, run until her lungs burn but she pushes, nearly sliding into a cave that didn't smell occupied and slowly makes her way in. It's small, just big enough for her to curl up in but it will do for the moment.

Her father is-was the village doctor and he made sure his wife and daughter knew enough of his practice. She lays down and tilts just enough for Marcel to slide onto the floor with a groan.

She doesn't know how to leave this form, she can't save him and she's angry, sad, heartbroken but then he calls her name.

"Alasie." It's soft, barely audible but she shuffles toward him, letting him pet and curl up against her. "i love you." The whine that leaves her dies in the cave, just like her heart but the gentle scratches and presence of Marcel has her sighing as she accepts fate.

She's lulled into a relaxed state enough for her to feel her body changing. It's excruciating, it's painful, it should be killing her but she's human once again, bare for her man to see for the first time.

She scrambles for a pack and gets to work on trying to save her love's life, ignoring the stillness of his body and the slowing beat of his heart.

Alasie paces the cave the best she can moving back and forth between the wall and the fire sitting in the cave's center. Marcel's asleep on the otherside, furthest away from the entrance and the cold. It'd be safer if she is in her newly discovered bear form, but she's afraid she won't be able to help Marcel out if she can't transform back.

She doesn't have time to mourn her parents, not when she's got to protect Marcel and herself. Those she left alive can come back with reinforcements and she doesn't want to think what they would do to her if they caught her, though the bear pelt beneath Marcel is a grim idea of what they would do.

She pauses before she can work herself up, instead closing her eyes to focus on the steady beat of his heart, sighing as her shoulders sag. The smell of death isn't clinging to him like it once was, and she took notice of her own illness-or lack of it. Ever since the transformation she's been rapidly healing, strength and stamina building, she isn't ill anymore.

She moves towards Marcel, changing into bear form before curling around him, and staring at the cave's entrance. Keeping eye for the man she loved.

Marcel wakes up around high sun the next day, his groan alerting Alasie who stands guard at the mouth of the cave. She turns around slowly walking toward the grumbling male while in bear form. His hazel eyes don't show fear or shock when they land on her. "Alasie?" The bear nods before nudging a cooked rabbit towards the soldier.

"So, it wasn't a dream..." He trails off as he rakes his eyes over her. "I thought you couldn't get any more beautiful." If she could blush she'd be crimson instead bowing her head before nudging the rabbit once again. He picks it up and takes a bite, moaning softly which has her chest swelling with pride. He finishes it off and she nudges another toward him before he pauses and looks at her. "You ate too, right?" She nods, moving to the mouth of the cave again to stand guard.

He watches the sun hit her fur, it was translucent, clear except for the reflective blue and purple that appear like waves with every movement. "This doesn't make me love you any less. If anything, I love you more." He isn't prompted to say it, but he knows her well enough that she's needs reassurance even if she doesn't ask for it. Marcel watches Alasie' left ear flick towards him but the way she sits taller, nearly blocking out all sunlight, proves that he needed to say those words.

A week passes before Alasie deems Marcel healthy enough to travel but still demands that he rides on her back even if he can walk just fine. She shoulders her way through branches and bushes and he's reluctant to admit that they are making better time and distance than they would have on foot. The sun pokes through the trees, granting them a little warmth but not enough to take off the numerous layers draped over his form.

They travel far, sprinting across open areas of foliage free terrain in fear of being caught, and by sun set they're once again settling into another cave, this time it's larger and has a curving entrance, protecting them from the elements and other creatures. Marcel starts a fire and Alasie sets out to hunt, returning with more rabbits for the male to skin and cook.

It's weird, usually the women are the ones who ready the meat, but he doesn't mind. Logic says that she's better suited for hunting anyway, especially with his injury, and she seems happy to take care of him.

"Can you change back now, please?" He asks and she simply shakes her head in response, focusing back on the rabbit before her. He huffs but digs into his own rabbit, watching with fascination how she can eat like an animal and yet maintain an aura of human mannerisms.

Chewing with her mouth closed, using her talons as utensils, and covering her mouth with a large paw when she burps. It's comical in a sense, something he'd see in the newspaper funnies and before he can stop it, he's laughing, causing the subject of his amusement to stare at him with a deadpan expression.

They repeat the process for two weeks, running through open areas and dense forests during the daylight and hiding in caves when the sun disappears beneath the horizon. Alasie refuses to transform back into her human form, letting Marcel ride her and hunting the best she can.

It isn't till the sun is halfway under the horizon that they find a depleted cabin in the middle of a forest so far from their home. It has a whole wall missing and a hole in the roof but it has two bedrooms and relatively bigger than what Alasie's parents home. There is a stream running behind it and a cave on the other side that they could rest in for now.

The two share a look and despite Alasie's lack of facial expressions, Marcel can see the want in her eyes. "Let's do some more exploring, there may be a town nearby." She nods and they set off after she trots around the building twice, leaving a scent strong enough to follow back.

The journey is quiet, the two content in enjoying the sounds of nature for five miles, pausing just before the tree line ends. It's a decently sized town bigger than what her parents would travel to, and they watch sled dogs bounce in place as they wait for their drivers.

The two nod before Marcel slides down, turning away to let Alasie transform, before she grabs one of the packs off his back. She doesn't take long to get dressed before they head down.

The two walk side by side, close enough to brush arms as they look around. Structures small but sturdy, signs newly painted, a colorful pebbled road in the middle. A bank, a saloon, a grocers, a smith, and a tailor beside the butchers.

The two step into the general beside the bank, small but well stocked. The store holds an older British gentleman behind the counter, checking inventory behind him.

"Hello." Marcel greets the man in English, pausing in front of the counter as the man turns around. "Welcome, what can I do for you?" 

"We've been traveling for a while now, saw this town and decided to stop."

"Well then, let me introduce you to Aklaq."

Alasie leaves the two men to talk, walking around the shop looking for a map before opening one she pulls from a small stand. The map is detailed enough to give a good idea of where they are, the middle of nowhere, surrounded by forests and a lake just beyond the saloon. Perfect for the two looking to start a new.

She folds it and replaces it when silence falls between the men, turning as Marcel pauses in front of her. "Well, what do you think?" He asks quietly and she nods. "Let's stay a while." The two turn toward the cashier and he smiles brightly. "The saloon has rooms above, it's down the street to the left."

The couple waves as they exit, making the journey to the Saloon before paying for a night.

One night became three, and by the time a week passed the two are renovating the cabin they found. The two started the work by themselves but once the town caught wind, everyone is helping in someway. From lumber to meals the townspeople are helpful, supporting the young couple as the cabin becomes new.


End file.
